Harley No More – Rant

Harley Quinn used to be my favorite villain of all time. In a way she was Joker’s Robin and that very much appealed to me. I even had a collector’s drinking glasses of hers to prove my true love for the character. Funny story the first time I was introduced to this character was through LEGO Batman: The Video Game. Yes, we’re going back to the days when LEGO games used to actually be funny when the characters couldn’t talk. Here comes the funny part. I thought she was a man. What? Didn’t laugh? Welcome to the party because what DC did to this character is unimaginable. Welcome to my very first official RANT.

“My love is now my regret.” ~Dark-Monitor 2017

First thing’s first Harley Quinn began to go down the hill once the New 52 hit! No, don’t expect this to be a New 52 rant because that thing holds a special place in my heart, but the biggest flaw the damn thing had was her. They did something downright stupid and that was separate her from the Joker. Okay, before you say anything, or before you go down to the comments without reading the blog itself and then write “Great blog!” (C’mon we all did this at least once) you have to know that I am all for independent characters, but the way they handled this was just wrong.

Everyone who knows Harley Quinn also knows that she is crazy over the Joker and that she will do anything for him. She is crazy in love (cue Beyonce) and his twisted schemes. She always did anything for him even though he abused her. So during Scott Snyder’s Batman: Death of the Family we find out Joker cut off his face and that he wants Harley to do the same. Okay, you think she will do it, but instead she refuses and says that this isn’t the same Joker like she used to know. Bitch please! Cutting off your own face to prove something to Batman is something a Joker would do. Don’t give that lame ass excuse. <spits on the ground>

But then again they made it seem like Joker apparently had more Harleys before Harleen Quinzel which was just downright stupid. They added something odd and silly so, it does make sense, but only with the idea that they ruined the Joker, instead.

This was only the beginning of the end. I thought, “Eh….whatever. As long as she’s crazy all will be well.” but I was wrong! Despite her being crazy all went wrong. Another reason why I hated her going solo is because it gave us crap. Shitty stories started pooping up (I didn’t misspell that). Harley Quinn’s solo book ended up being about nothing. Literally my life was more interesting than hers in the New 52 standalone series. Imagine if a 14 year old high on hormones who writes fan fics on Tumblr all day was hired to write this comic. Well that’s what her New 52 run was!!!! I thought I was gonna explode. Seriously, at one moment I thought she would move on to saving puppies.

Oh come on! You can’t be serious.

Harley not only makes herself look bad, but also others. A thing I can’t stand is how much of a sl*t she became! I see you already typing, “But Dark! Harley is a very sexually open person.” Yeah, you know who else is? Catwoman! Yet, you don’t see her banging any person on the rooftops other than Batman. The only people she should have a thing for is the Joker and maybe Poison Ivy. Deadshot? Go to hell. Nightwing? Go to hell! Deadpool? Why are you even on here! Even poor Aquaman has been put in a situation where he had romantic nods. Thankfully even Tumblr didn’t ship that Titanic.

And then the one I will never ever forgive DC for doing is hooking her up with one of the coolest characters of all time. Not even hook her up! She had actual sex with him (Spoilers for Harley’s Little Black Book #6). And that character was F@$%^#G LOBO, the Main Man!

The amount disrespect to both characters is ridiculous. This was the writer’s (Palmiotti) approach to the whole situation:

“I gotta say, we were writing it and it’s probably the easiest Harley book we’ve written. We [Palmiotti & Cannon] were just laughing out loud and saying, ‘Oh no. We HAVE to go there.’ We just kept saying that and waiting for DC to say, ‘You can’t do that.’”

You’re telling me that you were throwing “funny” stuff at a wall and hoped it stuck to it even though it feels forced and comes out of nowhere in the story? Then thinking a famous character having it with another famous character made it funny? “Hey guys look, Batman & Wonder Woman are loving each other. Hahaha! Isn’t that funny? Guys? Guys?” In my head I can imagine the writer and artist laughing and thinking of another character Harley should have sex with. The sad part is that they find such thing funny. But it’s not just her original series where she is made out to be a complete s*ut. Oh no! Just recently in Suicide Squad she continues to have her affairs with more characters, she should never engage with! Harley X Rick Flagg is disturbingly pathetic.

I bet Zod was hurting himself because he couldn’t stand this comic.

Harley Quinn what happened to you? You were so cute, so innocently evil. Now, you’re just disgusting. Sadly her DC Rebirth #1 issue sold over 300K, her movie appearance made her very popular and her future film appearances will only continue on making her more popular bringing in the end of us all.

Let’s face it. Even Margrott Robbie’s role in the film was pretty disappointing. We all just told ourselves to like it because we really wanted to like a Harley Quinn by Margot Robbie especially, that it was her first big screen appearance. The bar scene portrayed her horribly. “Own it!” Own what? Killing your own family? Shut up. Real Harley would feel sympathetic. Despite her being a bad guy she has a heart. And what’s up with that dumb accent that came out of nowhere? Lesson today? Movie Harley has no heart while the comic one has only that and nothing else resulting in some real cringe. The only one we can count on are the video games! In them even when the Joker is gone or simply not present Harley is still Harley. Thank God for those! Don’t get me started on the majority of her hardcore fan-base who get their main knowledge from the movies, fan-art or fan-fics who non-stop say “Puddin'” or “Mista Jay” as a sign to show they are her “true fans”. Harley and Joker “fans”? Just stop.

Even when I try to ignore her stuff it’s impossible! I once wanted to pick up my Justice League comic book during the epic Darkseid War storyline by Geoff Johns. It took me 15 minutes to drive to my Local Comic Book Store. I got there and what happens? They ran out of the original Justice League covers and only had, get this, Harley’s Little Black Book variant cover. WHAT!??!! Harley Quinn on a Justice League cover!!!! Why are you shoving her everywhere?! Kill me already. I had to drive all the way to a different store. She just haunts me!!!! Even now as I look behind my back I think she stares me down with that stupid smile not her face. Well, soon it is her 25th Birthday and all I wish for her is death. I am gladly no longer her fan/slave. Harley Quinn you suck and GET LOST!

Completely agree and though I don’t go for memes too much I have to, every time someone posts some fan art image about wanting a love like Joker and Harley because they think it makes them a bit cooky and weird, I have to post the one about preferring Gomez and Morticia because while they are also weird and Kooky they actually love each other.
Also quick question I just thought of. In the same way that Jason Todd has gone from plucky boy wonder to sometimes mass murderer depending on the writer it doesn’t feel as odd because he’s not robin anymore, he’s red hood. Likewise Tim and Dick have also made sure to try and establish their own identity. My question to you is should Harley have tried to establish her own new identity when she left the joker instead of still calling herself his robin.

The difference between Harley and the Robins is that Batman found the Robins and Harley found the Joker. In some versions it was Tim Drake who discovered Batman, but it was still Bruce who accepted him in. Harley on the other hand was someone who chose to be this person, she was so to say “meant for him”. She accepted him into her mind. So now changing it so that she no longer identifies with the Joker makes no sense. And there are proven ways of Harley Quinn being independent and written well while still having her existence surround around the Joker. Great examples: Injustice, the later Batman: Arkham series. In those stories she is herself yet the she works alone without the help of Joker (I’m keeping in spoiler free friendly too). So to answer your question I do think she should have stayed “Joker’s Robin” even though like I said she would be more than just a evil version of a Robin.

I do miss the original costume, and personality. Separating her from the Joker works for me, if only because I’m curious to see how it could work. But her New52 run was as bad as you said. And more. The parts I hated was the disgusting imagery that became associated with her : she, or her “pals” have fun flinging literal poop all over the city. And decomposing corpses. She keeps corpses in fridges she uses for food too. Have a bunch of dogs tear apart and eat alive some random guy and then cuddles with the dogs, getting blood all over herself … at some point I couldn’t read a new page without smelling some rancid awful stench.
But then the only Harley I like is the one from the original BTAS. She wasn’t good in the Arkham games, or in the movie, or in pretty much anything since the 90’s.
Would be cool to have the original somehow time travel and confront the modern Harley ^^